Calcavecchia, Slocum share lead
PALM HARBOR, Fla.- Mark Calcavecchia felt confident about his game and fell in love with his putter. That's a rare combination for him, so he had a hunch that Saturday would bring him a good round in the PODS Championship. He never could have imagined this. .
Winner Rachel Sherman was described by her three children as "the ...
In the heartfelt nomination, Hamilton's son wrote that she taught him "the most important thing you will ever have is family, that no matter what, family is the thing that will never leave you."
Marcus, the second-runner up, was recognized for battling through kidney failure and rheumatoid arthritis to successfully raise her three adopted children. In her nomination letter, Marcus was described as always putting other's needs before her own.
"Taking about 80 pills a day to prevent infection," the letter read, "never stopped her from taking us to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure… She's living proof of what she has taught her children our whole lives: just because she's disabled doesn't mean she's unable."
In addition to the top three mothers, all the honored guests received gift bags and were treated to pictures with the players.
Al-Qaida Suspect Says He Beheaded Daniel Pearl
The alleged al-Qaida mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, boasted of being personally responsible for decapitating the US journalist Daniel Pearl five years ago, in a new transcript released by the Pentagon yesterday. The claim comes on top of 30 other al-Qaida operations he said he been involved in.
Mohammed, 42, a Pakistani brought up in Kuwait, claimed he was the shadowy figure shown in a video of the beheading of the Wall Street Journal reporter. "I decapitated with my blessed right hand the head of the American Jew, Daniel Pearl, in the city of Karachi, Pakistan," the transcript quotes him as saying.
A Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman, said the passage was withheld from 26 pages of his "confession" released on Wednesday to allow time to inform Pearl's wife, Mariane.
Grand Prix Events: featuring GP Euroseries
La Grande Passione (The Great Passion) showcases 240 of the greatest racing cars ever made. They will battle for each sweeping curve of Donington Park in 12 races over the Bank Holiday weekend of 6th and 7th May, 2007. 'La Grande Passione' is at the heart of this event with many Ferrari, Maserati and Alfa Romeo cars competing. The famous British, German and French racing designs will also set the heart racing. These rare and exciting cars are provided by the two leading historic racing organisations; the Historic Grand Prix Cars Association and the Masters Racing Series. This meeting is the most authoritative historic racing event on the spring calendar. If you think modern F1 is boring and a procession, with overtaking only happening in the pits- then watch this- close racing with places being swapped every lap!
.
Can old rockers share the wealth?
To some, heritage rock acts like Rod Stewart, Paul McCartney and the Rolling Stones are the saviors of the touring industry. They are the cornerstones of the live-music economy because of their appeal to the mammoth and powerful boomer population, lazy record executives and radio programmers out for the easy sell. These acts pack arenas consistently with above-average ticket prices, and they annually top the year- end grosses as the most successful and powerful artists to hit the road.
But others see these rockers as part of a greater problem, one that threatens the very foundation of rock 'n' roll. If you're shelling out $29.50-$95 .
Bus fleet getting newer, greener
The Lowell Regional Transit Authority continues to upgrade its fleet, which is getting greener every day. This month the authority rolled out seven new buses, adding to the 12 new buses it brought online last year.
The latest acquisitions, seven 35-foot buses, were purchased from Gillig Corp. of Hayward, Calif. They seat 32, burn low-sulfur diesel fuel, and accommodate wheelchairs. "They're state-of-the-art," said the transit authority's executive director, James Scanlan, last week.
Eighty percent of the cost of each $285,000 bus was paid for with grants from the federal government. The state paid for the remaining 20 percent.
With five new buses scheduled to join next year, the transit authority will have replaced more than half its fleet of 45 buses in a few years.
Workers doubt health info from employers
The millions of dollars and countless hours employers spend on health and wellness campaigns may be falling on deaf - and distrusting - ears, according a survey released today by J.D. Power and Associates.
The firm, generally known for its auto rankings, released today its first-ever National Health Insurance Plan Satisfaction Study, which surveyed 10,552 consumers on their satisfaction with their health plans.
Among the questions asked: Which of the following do you trust the most when it comes to advice about how to stay healthy and how to get the best healthcare? Not surprisingly, a large majority cite their doctors, with 70% naming their primary care physician and 31% saying the specialist they see the most. However, just 2% trust employers most -- well behind online health articles (22%), their health plan (12%), the government (8%) and even none of the above (6%).
Racin' Roddin' And Restorin' Pays Off
According To The Specialty Equipment Market Association (www.sema.org), the automotive aftermarket is a $34 billion per year industry. Racing, hot rodding, customizing and restoring classic and vintage automobiles are strong revenue sources for thousands of machine shops all over the United States, but money is not the only payoff. For many, being able to work on some of the best autos and bikes ever created is more satisfying to them than their paychecks. Building a top fuel dragster, restoring a 1920-something luxury car and painting a mural on the side of the family van require different skill sets, but one thing most of the people doing this work have in common is a passion for the work.
.
Congress urged to use FHA to help with Mortgage Lending Crisis
A leading consumer group involved with lending practices and community rebuilding is lobbying congress now to use the FHA and arrange more realistic refinancing for all the people with "sub prime" loans who are facing bankruptcy and loss of their homes right now. The estimates of the numbers of now questionable loans exceeds a million, and they say this would be intolerable to have this many families out of their homes in such a short time period and would have devastating ripple effects across the economy as a whole."Homeowners with subprime mortgages struggling under payments need federal government help to ease them through the crisis, a leading consumer advocacy group said on Wednesday."..more thereed:they certainly need something. Affordable low end housing* is fast disappearing, and with zero employment guarantees anymore (jobs disappearing overseas, etc), it is going to keep creeping up the ladder into the middle classes even worse.
Shared equity loans expensive way to buy
THE new shared equity mortgage allows borrowers to buy property they traditionally couldn't afford – but this privilege isn't cheap, particularly if house prices jump.
The new product has sparked fears it will add to the growth in house prices because of the extra flow of liquidity to the market.
The loan has been launched as an equity finance mortgage (EFM) and is issued by Adelaide Bank and funded by Rismark International.
Brian Jones, managing director of non-bank lender Homeloans, which recently wrote the country's first EFM loan in Perth, said the product was designed to overcome poor home affordability in NSW and Victoria.
"It's had that original foundation in that there was a problem with, particularly younger people and affordability in high-value markets, possibly having to move away from family and look for employment elsewhere rather than having free access to the markets and the geography that they were accustomed to," he said.
Booming mining's no longer the pits
EVERY time Sue Gogilis starts her shift driving the company truck she gives her steering wheel a good rub with a few disinfectant wipes.
Gogilis, a 34-year-old mother of two, was a dental assistant until last May. Now she drives a mammoth dump truck at one of Rio Tinto's iron ore mines, hauling 230 tonnes of rock and dirt across the scorching Pilbara region in Australia's outback.
"They need the bodies," she said. "And so if there's a body, they don't care if it's male or female as long as it can drive the truck."
From the pits of Australia to the coalfields of Wyoming, mining companies like Rio Tinto are hunting for people to address a dire shortage of workers. A decade ago, with prices slumping, the sense of mining as a sunset industry left it with a workforce with grey hair under its hard hats.
Survey: Property Sales, Enquiries Increase
KUALA LUMPUR, May 15 (Bernama) -- A survey by Real Estate and Housing Developers' Association (REHDA) shows that property sales and enquiries rose following the government's liberalisation measures to stimulate foreign ownership and investment in properties. "The survey, conducted between Apr 21 and May 8 this year, showed an 18 percent increase in property sales and 22 percent rise in enquiries," REHDA deputy president, Datuk Michael Yam Kong Choy, said at a media briefing to release the survey result. He said the measures included exemption of real property gains tax (RPGT), removal of the limit of the number of property loans allowed for non-residents and the lifting of Foreign Investment Committee approval. "Of the incentives, respondents credited the blanket exemption of the RPGT as the main contributor of improved sales.
R. Craig Goss of CTX Mortgage earns CMPS
PORTSMOUTH -- R. Craig Goss, a mortgage financial planner, with CTX Mortgage, has passed the qualifying exams to earn the designation Certified Mortgage Planning Specialist (CMPS) granted by the CMPS Institute of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The CMPS Institute is a training and certifying organization created to help mortgage professionals integrate financial planning concepts into the mortgage process.
CTX Mortgage, a subsidiary of Centex Corp., is a leading mortgage lending company dedicated to building clients for life through sound mortgage financial planning.
Currently, CTX Mortgage employs the highest percentage of CMPS certified loan officers than any other mortgage company.
PR chapter welcomes Thomas Bebbington
PORTSMOUTH -- The Yankee Chapter Public Relations Society of America welcomes Thomas Bebbington, manager of public and community relations at Long Term Care Partners LLC, a joint venture between John Hancock Financial Services Inc.
New or used? Peace of mind is a crucial factor
It's hard to remember when there was a better time to consider a used car instead of a new one.
The record number of new cars and trucks sold in recent years -- fueled largely by extremely attractive rebates and low- or no-interest financing -- has created an overabundance of used cars. That gives the used-car shopper a lot of choice.
The flooded market also means depressed prices on used cars -- bad news for new-car buyers trading in their old models, but good news for bargain-hunting used-car shoppers.
Furthermore, an increasing number of certified pre-owned car plans have cropped to provide consumers with peace of mind when it comes to buying a used car.
In the end, the decision to buy new or to buy used boils down to what you can afford and what will give you peace of mind.
Top sport-shoe maker aims to double China outlets
HONG KONG: Yue Yuen Industrial (Holdings), the top maker of shoes for Nike Inc and other footwear brands, plans to more than double its network of Chinese outlets within two years, accelerating a retail foray.
The firm moves the shoes that it makes via 1450 outlets sprinkled across the country but it now aims to raise that total to 3000 within two years, managing director David Tsai told reporters after a shareholders' meeting on Thursday.
It aimed to own two-thirds of those new stores and retail counters, the executive added.
Yue Yuen, which operates a sprawling production web covering China, Vietnam and Indonesia, is moving increasingly away from fabricating shoes for the likes of Nike and Adidas toward wholesale and retail.
That division accounted for 8.3 per cent of nearly $US3.7 billion ($NZ5.3 billion) in revenue in the year ended September 30, up from 5.4 per cent the previous year.
US STOCKS-Indexes slip on growth worry, profit-taking
NEW YORK, May 14 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Monday as renewed concerns about the economy's health overshadowed news of a $7.4 billion deal to buy a majority of Chrysler.
In addition, investors opted to take profits after six straight weeks of gains by the main indexes, traders said.
The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI: Quote, Profile, Research was down 16.90 points, or 0.13 percent, at 13,309.32. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (.SPX: Quote, Profile, Research was down 6.50 points, or 0.43 percent, at 1,499.35. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC: Quote, Profile, Research was down 22.69 points, or 0.89 percent, at 2,539.53.
.More Central Banks diversify away from the US Dollar- Forex Crises ...
For years now we have warned of tsunami like capital waves crossing the globe bringing financial drama with it. We have pointed to the structural problems that could give rise to the damage these waves will cause. We have warned of the Central Bank's moves away from the U.S.$. We have also warned of the damage the Trade deficit is doing to the U.S. We have also warned of global foreign exchange and rates crises.
We coined the expression "Live now, Pay later" syndrome that has been all-pervasive in the U.S.A. Add this to the "so far, so good" attitude and what happened this week in global markets has been long overdue. It signals that globalization and the free flow of capital across this globe of managed foreign exchange rates, plus the interdependency of global economies will undermine all paper currencies to some extent.
Animal groups object to Nike croc shoes
Animal rights advocates in Britain have sharply criticized sports equipment maker Nike for creating a special edition training shoe out of crocodile skin.
The shoes, which feature 18-carat gold lace tags and retail for about $2,700, were created for the 25th anniversary of Nike's Air Force 1 range, Sky News reported Monday. .Hybrid Cars Helping To Drive Down Insurance Costs
(NAPSI)-−Hybrid vehicles may help to save more than the environment. They may also mean savings for drivers when it comes to auto insurance. For example, on the heels of recently signed legislation aimed at reducing California's greenhouse emissions by 25 percent by the year 2020, one insurance company has introduced a program to help support that goal. California hybrid owners can now take advantage of a 10 percent discount on auto insurance offered by Travelers. Experts say any vehicle is considered a hybrid when it combines two or more sources of power. Hybrid cars run off a rechargeable battery and gasoline. The company is the first to offer a discount to hybrid drivers on a national level and has been steadily rolling out the discount state by state. It has recently made the discount available in New York, Maryland, Florida, Washington and Texas, bringing the total number of states in which the discount is offered to 42, in addition to the District of Columbia.
Marine's mother makes personalized cards
WACO, Texas -- Every holiday, Reba Webster Hollingsworth sends out nearly 2,000 handmade, personalized greeting cards to strangers across the globe.
Time-consuming, yes. But the 36-year-old Waco legal assistant says it's the least she can do.
She shows her support for the troops with the paper, markers and stamps those cards are made from.
To Hollingsworth, the cards mean a heck of a lot more than a magnetic ribbon on the back of her Ford saying she supports the troops.
And she'll tell you that defiantly.
"I choose to show my pride in ways that are beneficial to those who protect us and our freedoms," she said.
Hollingsworth's efforts may prove more important than ever with the war in Iraq entering its fifth year this week.
Pakistan IT Jobs Boom: Rozee.pk Becomes Top Jobs Marketplace
Los Angeles, CA (FV Newswire) - Rozee.pk, the top jobs portal of Pakistan has seen an 800% growth in traffic over the past one year to become one of the most visited sites in Pakistan. With the massive global demand for IT man power and the move of multinationals to Pakistan as an "offshore destination", the prospects for IT professionals have never been better. Pakistan's strong growth rate, infrastructure development and formal IT policy has increased domestic demand as well. Fortunately for the employers, Pakistan's large computer literate, English speaking population is a steady source of engineers. Traditionally, there was a lot of distortion in the Pakistan job market place due to inefficiencies. The traditional media such as newspapers could not cope with the rapid paced jobs market and therefore caused unnecessary churn.
Skate ShoeNike Unveils The Official New Mens NCAA Basketball Uniforms
Players from four elite basketball universities will be hitting the court this week with distinctly different Nike uniforms that showcase their upper bodies - and a little less leg.
Nike unveiled the new line of basketball uniforms Tuesday. They are being introduced for the University of Florida, Ohio State University, University of Arizona and Syracuse University. The shoe and apparel giant plans to start introducing personalized uniforms to all its NCAA-Nike partner schools beginning next fall.
The new look is decidedly different. The jerseys are tighter and the shorts are longer and baggier. And players have an option of "personalizing" their look with aerodynamic underlayer tops and leggings.
Nike says the look creates a "dramatic new silhouette" and responds to player requests.basketball nike presented shoes
